What is the right balance between publicly and privately funded university
education? Some argue that society benefits from an educated
population, especially in STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering,
Mathematics), and that the cost of education should thus be borne by the
tax-payer. Others argue that it is individuals who benefit most and
that students should be expected to pay for their education. In 30 years
the UK has shifted from a system in which students received
maintenance grants and paid no fees to one in which students are
expected to take out loans to cover maintenance and tuition fees.
Which is better?
How should university education be paid for? Should individuals
pay for their own education? Or should the state pay? Does the current
policy fail poorer students, restricting access to Higher
Education? Is there a better way to pay?

Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and
The Great Debate present Responding to Climate Change: Should the Experts Decide?
Monday, 11th September 2017 The Core, Science Central, Newcastle upon Tyne

Public distrust of experts has become a hot topic recently,
notably in the discussions surrounding Brexit and the US presidential election.
This gives rise to serious questions about what part expertise should
play in decision making and whether this is compatible with democracy.
What does this mean for climate change policy?
Some argue that, given the scientific consensus on climate change,
policy should be driven by the experts. Others argue that
the science of climate change is only a small part of the story when
it comes to making decisions about, for example, energy policy.
So, how much
weight should be given to the views of climate scientists?
How do we make the right decisions about our future?
More ...

ice breaking dialogue 1:Devolution: is it all just smoke and mirrors?
Thursday 23rd February 2017
Mining Institute, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1SE

The relocation of power away from the centre has major implications
for society. Will the government's devolution agenda benefit the
North East? Will it enable us to secure much needed investment in
our infrastructure? Should we embrace or resist it?
We invite anyone interested to discuss the policy changes needed to ensure
that devolution works for people, the economy and the environment of the
North East.

Water, so vital for human life, covers 71% of the Earth’s surface. Yet despite huge
progress in technology and modern development, water scarcity is one of the great challenges
facing humanity today. Indeed, water scarcity has become an increasingly important debate -
globally - in recent years, with water crises in Flint, Michigan and in California becoming
just two of the most striking examples of how developed Western nations can struggle to
maintain plentiful water supply. While California’s drought-hit residents are blamed for their
water-guzzling swimming pools and golf courses, water poverty has begun to be a real concern.
In Ireland, disputes about privatisation of the state water company and the introduction of
charges led to mass refusal to pay water bills, civil disobedience and even riots, which at
times threatened to topple the government. Meanwhile, whilst floods across northern England
often dominate headlines, there is growing anxiety over the future of water supply in the UK,
particularly in the south-east of England. Despite the increasing intensity of heavy rainfall
over recent years, the Environment Agency has classed the south-east region as under
‘serious water stress’, which is compounded by population increases and changes to weather patterns.

Why is such a fundamental utility so problematic? Some commentators suggest, in the developed world,
these problems are fundamentally infrastructural, driven by inefficiencies in water management and
political complacency, and argue that innovative solutions are preferable to rationing measures.
Following a prolonged period of low rainfall in the UK up to 2012, water companies were preparing
themselves for water-saving and management measures beyond ‘hosepipe bans’ and there are concerns
that the recent wet period has only delayed confronting underlying problems rather than being seen
purely as a result of weather patterns. In contrast, a dry country like Israel, for example, has
overcome a profound crisis through substantial investment in desalination plants and conservation
systems.

And what of solutions? In England and Wales, up to 20 per cent of water is still lost in the
damaged and decrepit underground water supply pipes; environmentalists argue for
Sustainable Urban Drainage – absorbing water in green roofs, filling water butts for re-use,
and attenuation systems to alleviate urban surface water flooding. This year, even China’s president,
Xi Jinping, advocated that China’s cities should be water-absorbent Sponge Cities.
But sometimes obvious engineering solutions face political opposition: for example, it is argued by
some that the construction of an Abingdon Reservoir would solve most of London’s water problems,
but this has been held up by for a decade by opposition from local people. Or perhaps we need to pay more?
Once a radical proposal, earlier this year, analysts from Deloitte argued that increasing the price of
water – also done in Israel – would incentivise much-needed investment in water systems and alleviate
the resulting costs on energy and food production of water scarcity.

How has water provision become a problem for even advanced globalised societies? Has a lack of
investment and political will created a false problem, or will counter-crisis measures such as
rationing become the norm? What happened to sea-water desalination plants? Does a focus on drought
and rainfall distract us from a discussion about water as largely a man-made resource like any other,
with associated costs? What innovations would help avert a coming crisis and who should pay for them?

Discussion of natural resource depletion has been widespread for over four
decades, yet there still seems to be little consensus on what to do about it.
Some argue that small is beautiful and that we should all consume less.
Others believe that we need to think more ambitiously and that the only limit
to resources is our imagination. How do we as the geoscientists engage with
these highly differing positions? Is the demand for natural resources exceeding
what the Earth can produce? If so, what can we do about it? As our knowledge
grows, does our ability to act and solve problems grow with it?

If the geosciences community understands the intimate interactions between for
example water, energy and food supply, a view expressed recently in terms of
the water, food and energy nexus, we should be able to make a real contribution
to joined-up thinking in the way that resources are managed. So, how can we
ensure that our understanding influences management practices? Can we identify
underlying approaches to apply to problems? Can we solve current problems
without compromising the requirements of the future?

Water security is one of the great challenges facing humanity today
with more than one third of the world’s population living in
water-stressed areas. Difficult questions need to be addressed about
how we manage and consume water - for domestic, industrial and
agricultural purposes. With the United Nations predicting a world
population in excess of 10 billion by 2100 and climate change potentially
further threatening people's access to potable water, are we doing what
is necessary to secure our water resources? There is immense expertise
and knowledge in the science and engineering communities on how to make
best use of the resources we have, from better storage and infrastructure
to drip irrigation, wastewater processing and efficient desalination.
So, what can we do to make sure that people have the water they need?
What legacy do we want future generations to inherit in terms of water
security? What are we doing right and what can we do better to manage
this most essential of all resources?

Community Hubs Network
and The Great Debate present Were things better back then?
Is the gay ‘community’ now in decline?
Wednesday 3rd December 2014
The North of England Mining Institute,
Newcastle upon Tyne

Come and share your views and experiences on whether or not
“community” is an out-dated term for LGBT people in
North East England. This is the first of a series of
debates we are presenting as part of the
Sal Lumsden Archive Project
in association with The Great Debate.

What is the current state of the North East's infrastructure? How does it
compare with the rest of the country? What should we prioritize over the
next decade and the next half century? A panel of engineers introduced the
current state of play based on the latest ICE State of the Nation Report,
followed by an hour of discussion with the audience.
More ...

Should we exploit the UK's onshore shale gas,
and if so under what conditions?

Induced hydraulic fracturing (widely referred to as fracking) has
been in use since the 1940s but has recently come to the fore as
a means of releasing natural gas stored in shale rocks that would
otherwise be inaccessible. This technology has huge potential for
providing gas for energy generation, and has become increasingly
attractive as gas prices have risen and the natural gas that can
be easily extracted has been depleted. However, there is significant
resistance to the technology due to potential environmental risks
of its widespread use, such as ground water contamination
and the migration of gases and chemicals to the surface.

This event explored the question
'Should we exploit the UK's onshore shale gas,
and if so under what conditions?'
using the new economics foundation's
Crowd Wise process:
Beginning with the central question
"Should we exploit the UK's onshore shale gas,
and if so under what conditions?"
participants (panel and audience) will be invited to work
together to create and refine possible answers with a view to
deciding jointly what the best solutions are.
More ...

For years geoengineering, defined by the United Kingdom’s Royal Society as “the
deliberate large-scale manipulation of the planetary environment to counteract
anthropogenic climate change,” was seen by many as a peripheral and slightly
bizarre area of research. However, given ongoing difficulties with negotiating
emission reduction targets and with 2015 fast approaching – the year when
countries have to conclude a global climate agreement through the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change –
many have started taking geoengineering seriously as a potential way to
offset the negative consequences of climate change. When the recent IPCC
report suggested that geoengineering the climate could be necessary to meet
climate goals, it brought the controversy over the topic into the spotlight.
So, how feasible is it to manipulate the Earth system for our own ends?
Is it something we should be doing? Or will it do more harm than good?

Proponents of geoengineering argue that it is an essential component to
counteract climate change and that it provides a cost-effective alternative
to reducing carbon emissions. Those against it argue the risks are too great
and the unknowns too numerous. So what stand should geoscientists take on this?
Should there be a major push for research funding for this area? Should we be
going ahead with large-scale experiments? More ...

What do we need to do to develop brownfield sites and make the best use
of them? How do we want to use them? What technologies can be applied
to make them useable?
Brownfield or previously developed land, is everywhere. Nearly everyone
has visited or lived near an area that was once used for industrial purposes,
making it unsuitable for redevelopment. Besides being an eye sore,
brownfield is also known to be detrimental to the health and wellbeing of
communities who live near it, but often the financial costs are too great
for it to be restored and developed. As the global population rises and
land for agriculture and housing increases in demand, redeveloping
brownfield may hold a solution to some of these challenges,
but how do we do it? Some technologies are available, while others are
in the making, but how can they best be used?
This event explored these questions with a panel
of experts and practitioners and a general audience.

The event used the new economics foundation's
Crowd Wise process
to explore the topic.

From the micro to mega, engineering influences every
aspect of our lives today. This one-day extravaganza
was an opportunity to hear about the cutting edge from fifteen
engineers from around the
country. Talks, discussions and exhibits all mixed with a
dash of comedy took the audience through a
wonder tour of engineering today, and offered the opportunity to ask
questions, challenge assumptions and engage in debate.
More ...

Decline and Fool was a day of active debate and documentary-making
held as part of ESRC Festival of Social Science.
Participants were invited to take a critical look at the declining influence
of ideas that have dominated politics, philosophy and the arts since the 1990s:
Environmentalism and postmodernism.
The day included a documentary-making training workshop for young people, who
had the opportunity to gain hands-on experience of working behind and in front
of the camera. Participants filmed a series of interviews with speakers and
audience members plus two debates on Environmental retreat and
After the fall? which were
FREE and OPEN TO ALL. Film-making training was open to under 25s.
More ....

What roles can and should media and culture play
in tackling inequality and enabling the marginalised to 'speak'?
Is there are a risk of 'culture' becoming social policy for the poor and
leisure for the rich?
Speakers: Vinod
Pavarala, UNESCO Chair on Community Media, University of Hyderabad Tony Durcan,
Newcastle Council Chair: Caspar Hewett

Identity and Change
10am-1pm, Saturday, November 30th,
International Centre for Life,
Newcastle

Has this year of festivals helped the region to discover a sense
of identity and new hope for the future? The leaders of the various
festivals will address these questions in this year’s final debate.
With
Anthony Sargent, Director, the Sage Gateshead;
Joyce Coleman, Organizer, British Science Festival;
Nikki Black.

On the Edge
7:30pm, Wednesday, November 13th, The Maltings, Berwick upon Tweed

The North East is an isolated area of England. How might the coming
Scottish referendum – however the people vote - benefit the North East?
With Joyce McMillan, The Scotsman,
Hannah Moses, Berwick Academy, Prof Fred Robinson, Durham University

A debate in honour of two great women: the militant sufragette
Emily Davison a hundred years on from her death, and the
MP and organiser of the Jarrow March,
Ellen Wilkinson.
With Tamsin Omond;
Julie Elliott, MP for Sunderland Central;
Miranda Threlfall-Holmes, Vicar of Belmont, WATCH;
Chair: Sheila Bamber, Rector of Bishopwearmouth.
More ...

Discussion about the stories and ideas that speak of hope
in our modern world, introduced by three
speakers' stories and reflections on how they
they might contribute to human flourishing.
With Colin Kirkwood,
Alan Bartlett and
Shahzad Hassan.
More ...

Panel debate looking at a variety of ways in which energy can be obtained from
water and wind and asking how much of our future energy requirements they can
provide. With Cat Button, Newcastle University;
Jonathan Hughes, The National Renewable Energy Centre (NaREC);
Richard Murray, Northumbrian Water.
More ...

10:00am: Visions for the Future of the North East
The North East has a unique and remarkable past, notably as
a hotbed of innovation from the Industrial Revolution to the
end of the 20th Century. Today, much of the industry of the
past has gone and unemployment is unacceptably high. However,
there is still much to celebrate: Education in the North East
is second to none, expertise is varied, new industries are being
attracted to the region and our famous hospitable culture brings
visitors from far and wide. So, what does the future hold for
the region? How can we capitalise on our strengths?
Speakers include: Catherine McKinnell, MP for Newcastle North Musa Hassan Ali, West End Refugee Service
Chair: Caspar Hewett

11:45am: Great North East Youth
Given the proud history of the North East how can we ensure
that the twenty first century is also marked by greatness?
Young people have to play a key part the region’s future,
so what does inspire young people today? Where should we be
looking and what should we be doing now to ensure that the
future of the region is better than the present?
Speakers include: Paul Frew, Chair, Newcastle Student Union Debating Society Hannah Underwood, Chief Executive, KeyFund
Chair: Lucy Probert

Running from March to October 2013 The Great Debate,
in partnership with NECTER and
Great North Festival, ran a free programme of
documentary-making workshops for young people not in employment,
education or training. The project provided opportunities for partiicpants
to learn about every aspect of film-making,from camera work, sound and
editing to interviewing and presenting.

Funding for the project was was obtained by NECTER from
The Big Lottery Fund's Awards for All programme and linked in with
The Great Debate's great northern youth voices
project, which resumes in January 2014.

How successful have the natural and social sciences been at telling
us about what we are? This course examined the benefits and shortfalls
of applying the methods of the natural sciences to the study of humanity,
through a critical look at the historical development of such theories from
Darwin and Comte to the claims of evolutionary psychology, neuroscience and genetics.
More ...

1 The view of humanity up to and including the scientific revolution
2 The birth of the social sciences - Condorcet, Saint Simon and Comte
3 and we were never the same again ... how Darwin placed humanity in nature
once and for all and how the Social Darwinists interpreted the theory of
natural selection
4 The foundations of sociology - Marx, Durkheim and Weber
5 The rise of the new determinism - interrogating the claims of genetics,
Evolutionary Psychology and neurobiology
6 Three humanists of the modern era - Bronowski, Malik and Tallis
7 Conclusions - where are we now?

Funded by Economic and Social Research Council
and Newcastle Institute for Social Renewal

A day of active debate and documentary-making
held as part of ESRC Festival of Social Science.
The event took a critical look at how the ideal of
equality has been eroded in recent times, becoming replaced by notions of
equity and the celebration of difference.
More ...

Is the North East's Infrastructure fit for purpose?
What infrastructure do we need for the region to develop to its potential
over the next thirty years?
A group of engineers presented their answers to these questions
and discussed and adapted their proposals in collaboration with the
audience. The event used the Crowd Wise process to seek a consensus
with all participants having a say. Click here
for full details, outcomes, discussion and video.

What should we prioritise to manage personal mobility effectively in
Tyne and Wear over the next twenty years?
A group of engineers presented their answers to this question
and discussed and adapted their proposals in collaboration with the
audience. The event used the Crowd Wise process to seek a consensus
with all participants having a say.
Click here
for full details.

How will the North East of England meet its energy needs in 30 years time?

What mix of energy sources should we be aiming to use in thirty years?
Should the region be a net exporter of energy? Should we shift to community
generation? Reduce our reliance on imported energy? Phase out nuclear and/or
gas powered electricity generation? Reduce demand through dynamic pricing?
Which renewable technologies should get the most investment?
A group of engineers presented their thoughts on these questions,
discussed and adapted their ideas with a public audience using new
economics foundation's
Crowd Wise method.
More ...

Film screening followed by discussion with the film-makers.
In feature length essay form, Sylvia Pankhurst: Everything is Possible
traces the ideas, campaigns and political life of the suffragette and revolutionary
Sylvia Pankhurst.
The film is packed with facts from primary sources,
rare images from museums and archives, interviews with historians and compelling
testimony from Sylvia’s son Richard Pankhurst and his wife Rita.
More ...Tickets £5 / £3.50 concessions / £2 for school students

Newcastle has changed beyond all recognition over the last 40 years and is
still changing fast. In 2010 Forum for the Future ranked
Newcastle as the most sustainable of the UK's twenty largest cities
for the second year running (see Sustainable Cities Index). Is this an accolade
we should attempt to retain?
What can we do to ensure that Newcastle is better in 2050 than it is today?
Come along and join in the discussion! With Special Guest
Chi Onwurah,
MP for Newcastle Central.
More ...

Celebrated Brazilian director Jorge Furtado turns his innovative
filmmaking approach to the story of a town who need to build a new sewer.
Whilst there is no state money for a new drain there is funding available
to make an educational film.
A young couple do some creative budgeting, planning to have enough
money to make a low-budget film and a new sewer.
Superbly acted, this is an upbeat and comic look at social activism
and how government funding, or lack of it, can shape communities.

The Great Debate Head to Head
with Jonathon Porritt and Daniel Ben-Ami
Economic Growth: Bane or Boon?
7pm, Tuesday, 19 October 2010 Gallery North,
University of Northumbria
(Gallery North is located in Squires Building directly opposite
the Sandyford Road entrance to Newcastle Civic Centre)

Is economic growth a good thing? Until the 1970s few would
have even thought of asking this question.
Yet today the West is often seen as guilty of overconsumption,
while the rapid growth of developing countries such as China
and India is seen by many in a highly negative light.
People who champion growth are accused
of encouraging greed, damaging the environment and
widening social inequalities. Daniel Ben-Ami, in his new book
Ferraris for all,
challenges these notions, arguing that
society as a whole benefits from greater affluence and that we
should celebrate growth. Renowned environmentalist and writer
Jonathon Porritt
disagrees and took up the arguments ...
View VideoChair: Caspar Hewett,
Director, The Great Debate

The Great Debate and RCE North East presented a packed
weekend of talks and discussion with activists, writers,
academics and practitioners
exploring a broad range of topics related to four themes:
Securing our Future, Sustainable Culture,
Being Human in the 21st Century and Pushing Limits including
debates on:

Carbon Trading
12:15 - 1:15pm, Thursday 10 June 2010
Could carbon trading be the solution for cutting emissions?
The idea is that a cap on total emissions is set and reduced
each year. High polluters must either reduce emissions or buy
credits from low-carbon businesses, which use the extra income
to make their greener technology more financially viable.
But how can we reliably measure emissions and can it really work?
Caspar Hewett
discusses the issues
with Mark Maslin, Director of the UCL Environment Institute,
and Tony Grayling from the Environment Agency.

Global Water Security
4 - 5pm, Thursday 10 June 2010
Water security is one of the biggest challenges facing humanity.
More than one third of the world’s population now lives in
water-stressed areas, and in the fight for this precious commodity,
regional ‘water wars’ are threatening stability.
Engineer Roger Falconer, geographer Richard Taylor and
governance specialist Sue Cavill discuss with
Caspar Hewett,
Director of The Great Debate,
how the planet’s plentiful supply of water can be fairly distributed.

2030: Engineering Our Climate
6 - 7.15pm, Thursday 10th June
Imagine it is 2030. Regrettably, global carbon emissions
targets have been missed and geoengineering techniques –
to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or to block the
Sun’s energy – may be the only option to prevent global
temperatures from rising. Can you decide the way forward?
Caspar Hewett
guides you through the expert advice from engineer Stephen Salter,
biogeochemist Richard Lampitt, and Professor of International Law
Catherine Redgwell.

Members book group: Robert Winston
4 - 5pm, Friday 11 June 2010
Exclusive event for Cheltenham Festival members. Share your views
in a discussion of
Bad Ideas?,
exploring its themes of human creative endeavour and
uninentional consequences, with the author Robert Winston.
Facilitated by The Great Debate
director, Caspar Hewett.

In the context of climate change the discussion of
energy provision is focused increasingly on renewables,
but how realistic a proposition is it for renewables to
provide the energy we need? Nuclear is touted by many
as an alternative, yet the problem of waste is far from
being solved. So when and how are we to come up with a
rational energy policy for the next fifty years? What
are the real issues and how do we overcome the barriers
we face today? Chair: Dr Paul Quinn,
Newcastle University Speakers:Dermot Roddy,
Science City Professor of Energy, Newcastle upon Tyne,
Director, Sir Joseph Swan
Institute for Energy Research;
Hervé Coutrix,
Vice President Geosciences Structural and Sedimentological studies, TOTAL;
Niel Bowerman,
co-founder and former Executive Director,
Climatico,
co-founder, The Climate Justice Project

One day workshop on the theme of how humanity should respond
to climate change. This exciting day included
active debates open to all and a video-making workshop
for young people with a thirst for cutting edge documentaries.
Getting Real About Climate Change encouraged
participants to take a critical look at the
current discussions surrounding the feasibility of geoengineering,
the effects climate change on
food and water security and energy generation,
and contribute to a video of the day's proceedings.
Our young participants had the opportunity
to gain hands-on experience in film-making, working both
behind and in front of the camera.
More ...Speakers includedTony Allan,
Stockholm Water Prize Laureate 2008, founder of
London University's Water Issues Group;
Greg
Bankoff, environmental historian, University of Hull,
Jennie Barron,
research fellow in water management at
Stockholm Environment Institute;
Julia Brown,
lecturer in Environmental Policy, Planning and Management,
University of Portsmouth;
Ben Campbell,
social anthropologist, Durham University;
Steve Caseley,
Director of Distributed Energy,
New and Renewable Energy Centre;
Tim Foxon,
academic research fellow at
Sustainability Research Institute, Leeds;
Joanna Haigh,
professor of atmospheric physics, Imperial College, contributor to
the recent Royal Society report,
Geoengineering the climate;
Phil Macnaghten,
founding Director of Institute
of Hazard and Risk Research, Durham University;
Rob Williams,
Renewables Projects Director, Banks Developments.

The world we live in today is one that is rapidly changing.
A major element of this is the almost universally accepted
global increase in temperature. How reliable is our understanding
of the future climate if we are to plan for the future? This short
discussion-based course will look at the history of climate
modelling, ask what we can and cannot deduce from current models
and reflect on what that means for people today and in the future.
The issues raised by climate change will be examined through
discussions on water resources, food and energy production.
The ramifications of the recent interest in geoengineering –
controlling the climate through intentional manipulation -
will be explored. The programme will consist of five sessions
each with an introduction followed by discussion. Week 1 (4 Feb): Introduction by Dr Caspar Hewett. How the media
treat climate change issues. How can we read between the lines?
Week 2 (11 Feb):Dr Stephen Blenkinsop,
Newcastle University, tells us about what climate change can
and cannot tell us.
Week 3 (18 Feb):Dr Richard Dawson,
Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, talks about the
challenges of adapting cities to address a changing climate.
Week 4 (25 Feb):Dr Annie Borland,
Moorbank Botanical Garden, on what the biological
sciences can do for us.Week 5 (4 March):
Review with Caspar Hewett

The Climate e-mail Row:
What does it tell us about science?
12:30, Wednesday 24 February
Newcastle Arts Centre
Westgate Road

Controversy and recriminations surround the ‘hacking’
of emails relating to climate change research. But what the does
the political and public reaction tell us about our society thinks
science does and ought to work? Introduced by Caspar Hewett.
Part of the Explore programme
Lunchtime Perspectives: Behind the News
series

'It's the end of the world as we know it
(and I feel fine): Why environmentalism has failed
and what comes next.'Paul Kingsnorth
5.30pm, 22nd February 2010
Beehive, Room 2.21. Newcastle University.

Paul Kingsnorth,
author, One No, Many Yeses,
Real England,
has been a peace observer in Mexico, a floor-sweeper in McDonalds
and a history student at Oxford University. He was arrested
during the Twyford Down road protests in the 1990s and was named one of
Britain's 'top ten troublemakers' by
New Statesman in 2001.
He has worked on the comment desk of
The Independent,
as commissioning editor for opendemocracy.net
and as deputy editor of The
Ecologist. He is also an award-winning poet,
and an honorary member of the Lani tribe of
New Guinea.

At this seminar Paul presented a version of his contribution to the book
What is Radical Politics Today?
edited by Jonathan Pugh of Newcastle University,
and published in November 2009 by Palgrave-Macmillan.

After the Second World War, architects, planners and politicians
across Europe privileged the role of the child in the city.
Yet today one or more children on the street is considered a
social problem in the making. How did we get to this impasse
and how can we get out of it?

At this seminar
Ken Worpole
was presenting a version of his contribution to the book
What is Radical Politics Today?
edited by Jonathan Pugh of Newcastle University,
and published in November 2009 by Palgrave-Macmillan.

Some argue there is no excuse for water shortages in a water-rich
nation like Britain, and that we should build ambitious new
infrastructures such as a ‘national
grid’ for water. Others think we should be curbing demand to
minimise our impact on the environment. Water engineer and chair of
The Great Debate,
Caspar Hewett and
Bruce Horton, environmental adviser
for Water UK, join Trevor Bishop from the
Environment Agency and Jonathon Porritt to discuss
the future of hydrating the nation.

One day workshop organised by The Great Debate and
WORLDwrite
focussing on documentary making, the role of the media, and
environmental issues. This exciting day will engage with topics
through film showings, discussion and a news-making workshop:
Thought provoking debates will interrogate inconvenient
untruths about climate change, explore the influence of the
media, and examine activism in the noughties.
With: Hilaire Agnama,
Teesside
One World CentrePaul
Chatterton, Leeds University Ceri
Dingle - Director of
WORLDwrite
and Chew on it ProductionsCaspar
Hewett, environmental consultant,
Chair of The Great DebateAlex
Lockwood, Sunderland University Kate
Manzo, Newcastle University Alison
Neilson, author
Disrupting Privilige, Identity, and Meaning: A Reflective Dance of
Environmental EducationViv
Regan, Assistant Director, Producer,
WORLDwriteNathalie Rothschild, commissioning editor,
spiked-online

The ‘credit crunch’ is already having material effects on households
that will deepen in the coming months. Households are experiencing a
reassessment of their creditworthiness that impacts on their capacity to
access consumer credit at affordable rates of interest. Limitations on the
availability of particular mortgage products and risk-adverse lending standards,
combined with falling house prices, also create challenges for existing
home-owners and would-be first-time buyers. Thus, in policy terms, new patterns
of financial exclusion and the sustainability of home-ownership are crucial
issues coming to the fore. Members of the public are invited to attend, raise
questions and contribute to the debate.

Speakers:Will Hutton, Chief Executive of The Work Foundation Professor Lord Giddens, Member of the House of Lords

What is the nature of radical politics today?
How should we describe its character?
What is thought of as radical politics at this moment?
What is not? Why?

This debate is part of the What
is radical politics today? project.
The project explores the nature and character of radical
politics today, examines what it means to be engaged in
radical politics and explores how radical politics works
to shape and frame what we think of ourselves, issues and debates.
Initiated and directed by
Jonathan Pugh,
and including fifty of the worlds leading
commentators, the ongoing project is aiming to develop a sense
and feeling about the present nature and character of radical
politics. Click here for
further details.

Flush it!A film première hosted by WORLDwrite and The Great Debate
Royal College of Art, London
2nd November 2008

Flush it! is a documentary aiming to put aspirations for
Western levels of water provision and sanitation on the map for
developing countries. The film interweaves concerns about local
water shortages, global water scarcity and toilet history with
aspirations for grand projects and excellent loos. Eritrean refugee
Tiba is at the centre of the film. Pontificating from her own bath
full of bubbles Tiba considers everything from depleted aquifers to
desalination to Livingstone’s plea not to flush. Tiba’s wet dream
informs us pit latrines stink, while experts help flush the crap and
remind us that water can never run out.

The Great Human Nature Debate
For centuries philosophers and scientists have been trying to define what
constitutes human nature, yet this area of knowledge remains highly contested.
Some think that agency, the capacity to make choices and moral judgements, and to
act on them, lies at the heart of being human. For others it is our consciousness of our
selves that is the defining factor. Others still claim that free will, agency and
consciousness are illusions that are accidents of brain function. So, is
there a universal human nature? If so, what do we all have in common? What makes us
different from animals? Do the defining factors even exist? Speakers: Rita Carter, author Mapping the Mind,
ConciousnessCaspar Hewett, Director,
The Great DebateThomas Pink,
author The Psychology of Freedom, Free Will: A Very Short IntroductionChair:Kevin
Yuill, Sunderland University

What can science tell us about human nature?

Modern developments in areas such as neuroscience, artificial intelligence
and evolutionary psychology have resulted in new ways of thinking about human
nature. Can we explain the mind and consciousness in terms of brain function?
Can we understand modern human behaviour in terms of our evolutionary heritage?
Is science even the right place to start if we want to understand human nature?
Speakers: Igor Aleksander,
author The World in My Mind, How to Build a MindBruce
Charlton,
author Psychiatry and the Human ConditionKenan Malik, author Man, Beast and ZombieChair:Pauline Hadaway, Director,
Belfast Exposed

What can computer science tell us about what biological systems do and how they
do it? Is it possible to replicate or model those chemical information-processing
functions in digital electronic computing systems? What are the implications of
recent developments in computer science and software engineering in understanding
the nature of causality?
Aaron Sloman, author of Computer
Revolution in Philosophy: Philosophy, Science and Models of Mind delves
into the world of connections between ideas developed in computer science, biology
and philosophy, providing new insights into some fundamental questions about the
nature of consciousness and free will.

Mental illnesses like autism and schizophrenia appear to have many
different causes, some of which are environmental and some seemingly genetic. In
this talk Christopher Badcock outlines
a new theory that seeks to
explain many of the facts in relation to conflict between genes
expressed from each parent's copy: so-called genomic imprinting. Not
only does this reveal the strange genetics involved in these illnesses
and the way environmental factors can mimic them, the new theory also
casts a revealing new light on what we take to be normality and has
far-reaching implications for our understanding of human nature.
Speaker:
Christopher Badcock, LSE

In the context of both mounting anxiety over climate change and predictions that
the worldwide peak of hydrocarbon production will occur before 2021, the
North East is striving to become a global leader in the shift to a low-carbon energy
economy. Such transitions typically span decades - energy infrastructure takes years
to develop and new energy technologies are likely to take time to mature.
So, what are the prospects of seeing a widespread transition to a sustainable energy
economy? What are the barriers? What will be the main drivers of change?
How might the UK’s energy mix evolve over the next 40 years?
And what of demand management? What obligations do we have as citizen-consumers?

The Complexity and Change Network in association with
The Great Debate and Newcastle Philosophy Society
present

Progress of the Human Mind: From Enlightenment to Postmodernism
9am – 4.30pm, Saturday, 27th September 2008
University of Northumbria at Newcastle

One day workshop examining the changing nature of society’s
understanding of the meaning of ‘progress’ and how it relates to the
way that humanity is perceived today. Thinkers discussed included
Condorcet, Kant, Saint-Simon, Auguste Comte and Michel Foucault.
Click here for further details.
Introduced by Caspar Hewett and
David Large.

Funded by Economic and Social Research Council and Newcastle University

One day workshop organised by The Great Debate and
WORLDwrite.
The workshop
focused on two new documentaries:
I'm A Subsistence Farmer... Get Me Out Of Here! and
Keeping Africa Small.
SpeakersCeri Dingle, Director of WORLDwrite
and Chew on it ProductionsViv Regan, Producer, WORLDwrite and
Chew on it ProductionsKim Tan, Campaigns Officer for
Oxfam UKBarry K.Gills,
Professor of Global Politics, Newcastle University John Gowing,
Reader in Agricultural Water Management, Newcastle University Bill Colwell, Atlantic Pictures
Hilaire Agnama, Development Education Worker

The Great Debate continues to support the acclaimed debating competition for
sixth form students

As part of The Great Debate schools programme we hope to
involve more students in the region in public debate
through our continued support of the Institute of
Ideas' and Pfizer's Debating Matters Competition. Following
its highly successful pilot year, the competition launched in the North
East in 2005 and has continued to grow, attracting more and more schools
in the region. This year's regional heats saw Durham Johnstone Comprehensive
School (Durham), Ryton Comprehensive School (Ryton), St. Mary's Sixth
Form College (Newcastle) and
Whickham School (Whickham) make it through to the North East regional final
which took place at Newcastle University on Monday 28 April 2008.

Debating Matters demands more than rhetoric or rant from the sixth form students
who take part. Young people are encouraged to research issues thoroughly and become
more confident and sophisticated in articulating their views by standing up to a
probing intellectual examination. This is all part of the competition's philosophy
of privileging reasoned participation over rhetorical posturing.
Debate topics engage with contentious contemporary issues and uniquely involve a
critical examination of debater's arguments by celebrity judges drawn from the fields
of academia, the media and business.

What is our rural land for and what do we expect from it?
Should farmers be diversifying into energy crops or concentrating on feeding
the nation? And is it reasonable to expect them to be competitive food businesses
as well as managers and guardians of wildlife and landscapes? When floods overwhelm
urban areas should that just be a problem for the individuals and businesses affected?
Or should country dwellers be prepared to sacrifice rural land for flood storage?

Everyone seems to want something different, but can rural land fulfil all of
these expectations? What is our long term vision for land use in the UK and do
we need an extension of the planning system from town into countryside in order
to realise it?

The UK research councils’ Rural Economy and Land Use Programme
invited
contributions to a unique on-line debate during
National Science and Engineering
Week/Festival of Social Science 2008.
The Programme’s land use policy analysts
will be posed some key questions to draw in opinion
from a wide range of
contributors, see the RELU
website.

Part of The
Space of Democracy and the Democracy of Space
programme Monday 25th June, 5.30pm
Bedson Teaching Centre, Newcastle University
Hosted by Dr Jonathan PughChair: Prof Phil Powrie,
Dean of Research for the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences,
Newcastle University Speakers:Prof Steve Rayner,
Director of the James Martin Institute (University of Oxford);
Director of the ESRC's ~£5m Science in Society Programme;
Member of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution,
the Oxford Commission on Sustainable Consumption and a lead author on the
Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Dr
Joe Smith, School of Social Sciences (Open University);
Director of the ESRC/NERC/BBC/NEF-sponsored
Interdependence Day project
Prof
Phil Macnaghten, Department of Geography (Durham University);
Director of the Institute of Hazard and Risk Research (IHRR); Honorary
Professor in the Institute for Advanced Studies at Lancaster University;
Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and Senior Associate of Demos
Prof Jim Hall,
Professor of Earth Systems Engineering, Newcastle University, advisor to the Stern
Review on the Economics of Climate Change, contributing
author to Assessment Reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Funded by
Economic and Social Research Council
and Newcastle Science FestivalSaturday, 17th March 2007, 9am-4pm
Newcastle University
At the opening of the 21st century concern for the environment influences
policy throughout the world.
Any discussion about resources is infused with the
language of sustainability. What does this mean for the developed and
developing worlds? Is our current pattern of water use
sustainable? How are we going to generate sufficient electricity for our future needs?
Is the sort of technology we take for granted in the West appropriate for
the developing world?
Combining a workshop on Film training with a global edge,
documentary footage from Africa and a series of
discussions this one day workshop examined a series of issues related to
Development, Sustainability and Environment through debates on three key themes:

The Great Debate: Reprogramming Life
sponsored by Atlantic Books
Wednesday 6th December 2006
Institute for Research on Environment and Sustainability
Devonshire Building
Newcastle University Location Map

What does it mean to reprogram the logic of life?
What are the implications of engineering nature's circuits?

The stuff of science fiction is now with us.
In 1994, after forty years of promises, scientists announced the coming of the world's
first molecular computer. Since then millions have been invested in molecular computing
and synthetic biology research. DNA, the code of life, now sits at the heart of
experimental computers in labs around the world. Hybrid machines integrate living cells
with silicon nanotubes and preparations are being made to create entirely new
organisms, never seen before.
How can humanity benefit from this revolutionary new technology?
What are the dangers? What are the ethical implications?

7pm, Thursday 30th November 2006
Institute for Research on Environment and Sustainability
Newcastle University

ChairCaspar Hewett
There is a crisis in housing in the UK. Demand for housing far outstrips availability,
fuelling ever increasing house prices. So where are we to go from here? What are the
barriers to providing housing for all at the beginning of the 21st century? James
Heartfield, author of Let’s Build, thinks it is time
we committed to a huge
building programme over the next decade, rejecting the scare stories about
the environment, about suburbia and about social cohesion. How realistic is this?
Come along, hear the arguments and have your say.

Bringing together leading academics from London, Newcastle and Lancaster, this
debate will explore the nature of post-territorial governance in the modern era.
Particular attention will be given to what have become known as ‘anti-political’
movements – those movements which are not accountable to territorial states; those
movements which seek political influence through reference to global ethical
principles, rather than through the accountability of mass party politics. What do
such movements tell us about the nature of the political in the modern era? Are they
a positive or negative development? And how are they reflective of what is being
called a ‘de-territorialised’ era?

Do the terms "left" and "right" mean anything today?
Is it really satisfactory to reduce all our political debate to these two terms?
Professor Frank Furedi discusses his new book, Politics
of Fear: Beyond Left and Right, arguing that contemporary and recent developments
have created the need for a new conception of politics with an adequate conception of
humanity - one that "remoralises" politics by taking humans seriously, recognises the
centrality of morality and discussions of right and wrong, and utilises our
imaginations. He proposes a new, and inevitably controversial, humanist politics to
escape the trap of 20th century political ideology.

Do humans really have a special place in nature?
What do the notions of progress and humanism have to offer us today?
This day school examined the development of ideas about the human
potential and the changing notion of progress from the Scientific
Revolution through to the present. The scientific method and its
influence on the Enlightenment was discussed and the way that
the notions of progress, equality and the centrality of humanity
have changed over the centuries was explored through a study of
key thinkers including Darwin and 'The Three Cs' - Copernicus, Condorcet and Comte.
Modern schools of thought such as Postmodernism and
how they relate to humanist ideas were discussed through
a study of Derrida, Foucault and Deleuze.

Why does the debate over how we should generate our power continue
to divide opinion? The EU has set a target for renewable energy of
22 per cent by 2010 but moves to build wind farms continue to meet
opposition in the UK. Germany is already the world's largest wind
power producer but the news that the German parliament has approved
plans to double the country’s 15000 turbines over the next 16 years
has been met with angry protests. Increasingly there is a push, even
from noted environmentalists, to expand the use of nuclear power to
help meet targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. So what is
the future of power generation?
with

Ten week course exploring the development of ideas about our relationship with
the natural world from the pre-Enlightenment to the crisis of belief in science towards
the end of the 20th century and the rise of postmodernism and environmentalism.

What lies behind the rise and rise of Evolutionary Psychology?
Does this reflect or inform the way we view ourselves?
One of the great triumphs of the late twentieth century was the
application of Darwinian theory to animal behaviour. This led
to many attempts to apply the same methods to human beings and
to explain the human mind in evolutionary terms. In the 1970s
sociobiologists attempted to explain human behaviour in terms
of adaptation and were accused of being reactionary and racist.
Yet since that period we have sociobiology's younger cousin Evolutionary
Psychology has come to the fore. Evolutionary Psychology attempts to
explain human nature exclusively in terms of evolved predispositions to
behave in certain ways. How does this differ from sociobiology?

What are the implications of this approach? What are its strengths and
weaknesses? Why has Evolutionary Psychology proved so popular when
sociobiology was rejected so ambivalently?

In the last 20 years environmental thinking has become very much a part of
our every day lives. The term 'sustainable development' has entered the
mainstream and is used to guide policy in both the developed and developing
world. Yet whilst we in the West enjoy a safe, clean, pleasant environment
coupled with high living standards the developing world is being discouraged
from aspiring to anything more than basic needs. So what is sustainable
development and what are its consequences? What is current in environmental
thought?
Combining a workshop on film training with a global edge, documentary
footage from Africa and the Middle East and a series of discussions this day
conference examined the relevance of
environmentalism in the new millenium and questioned whether development
to western standards is possible for the developing world.

Discussion sessions include Energy Futures,
Aspirations and keynote debate funded by the
RSA; What Future for Environmentalism?

What is that defines a human being? Is it a universal nature? Is it consciousness?
Is it our capacity for rational thought? Is it our ecological ability to adapt
our environment rather than adapt to it?
Can we rely on reason alone? What can we learn about ourselves through the
study of evolution? How do these considerations interrelate? Why is it so
popular to apply Neo-Darwinist principles to human behaviour and to society?

These questions and others were examined through a discussion of what it is
to be human with a panel of experts including
Colin Talbot, author The Paradoxical Primate,
Caspar Hewett, Chair, The Great Debate,
Inge Rebergen, Historian and philosopher,
Adam Bell, Kantian philosopher

The Great Debate supports North East launch of acclaimed debating competition

The Great Debate hopes to involve more students in the region in public debate
through its support of the Institute of
Ideas' and Pfizer's Debating Matters
Competition.
Following its highly successful pilot year, the competition launched for the first
time in the North East this year. The Great Debate was a partner in the North East
region heat that took place at the University of Newcastle on Friday 18 March 2005.

Debating Matters demands more than rhetoric or rant from the sixth form students
who take part. Young people are encouraged to research issues thoroughly and become
more confident and sophisticated in articulating their views by standing up to a
probing intellectual examination. This is all part of the competition's philosophy
of privileging reasoned participation over rhetorical posturing.
Debate topics engage with contentious contemporary issues and uniquely involve a
critical examination of debater's arguments by celebrity judges drawn from the fields
of academia, the media and business.

The debate motions for the North East region heat included: 'Victims should be
more involved in the criminal justice system'; 'Conceptual art is not real art';
'Reducing pollution should be society's top priority'; and 'Human genetic engineering
is a step too far'.

Do our genes influence our conscious experiences? Do they explain them? Is the
human mind something we can properly study? What can we learn about ourselves
through the study of mind from the perspective of evolution?
Since Darwin our vision of ourselves as a unique type of being has been
progressively undermined. What can recent theories related to evolutionary theory,
neurobiology and AI tell us about the experience of being human?

One of the great triumphs of the late twentieth century was the application
of Darwinian theory to animal behaviour. This led to many attempts to apply
the same methods to human beings and to explain the human mind in evolutionary
terms. Thus we see the rise of the now common phrase ‘the gene for . . .’ in
describing human behaviour. One theory, Evolutionary Psychology, attempts to
explain the mind in terms of evolved predispositions to behave in certain ways.

The theory of the meme rejects the notion that genes are sufficient to explain
cultural evolution - especially in the light of the pace of cultural change. A
meme is a unit of cultural transmission or imitation.
Like the gene, which is a
self-replicating molecule, the meme is a replicator - when a meme is imitated
it has replicated itself. Meme theorists argue that human beings are determined
largely by social factors, not just by genetic code and that there is another
unit of selection at work - the meme. What both these approaches have in common
is the idea that the notion of natural selection, can lead to an understanding
of the human mind.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of these approaches? Why are some
theorists ambivalent about the explanatory value of genes and memes when it
comes to the mind? Is there something fundamental that an evolutionary approach
cannot provide?

Are we masters of our destiny?
Can we really influence the direction of change?

Since the Enlightenment the idea of the subject has had a central place
in thought about the special nature of humanity. This is a description of human
beings as active agents doing things for reasons and shaping the world to their
own ends. Yet, in recent years, fields as diverse as neuroscience, literary
criticism and Evolutionary Psychology have converged on a very different vision
of what we are. In the last twenty years we have been brought a vision of
humans as machines; zombies experiencing the illusion of choice and intentionality.
Why is this? Does this reflect a new understanding of what we really are or are
these interpretations more to do with the way we view ourselves today?

Is there a case for caution where the outcome of scientific
and technological advances is uncertain?
It is hard to believe that only a short time ago the benefits of scientific progress
were taken for granted. Yet today the tendency is to consider the risks whenever a new
technology is developed. The precautionary principle urges us to err on the side of
caution when knowledge is uncertain and to place a duty
of care on those who propose change. What are the consequences of this new way of
looking at the world? Can we benefit from science without taking risks?
What are the dangers of playing it safe?

Day school: Saturday 13th March 2004
International Centre for Life, Times Square, Newcastle upon TyneTutors: Caspar Hewett and David Large

Is there a universal human nature? If so, what defines it? Is it consciousness?
Is it our capacity for rational thought? Is it our ability to adapt our environment
rather than adapt to it? This one day course examined some modern ideas of what
human nature is and attempted to draw some conclusions about these questions.

In the last 20 years environmental thinking has become very
much a part of our every day lives. The term 'sustainable development' has
entered the mainstream and is used to guide policy in both the developed and
developing world.
Yet whilst we in the West enjoy a safe, clean, pleasant environment coupled
with high living
standards the developing world is being discouraged from aspiring to anything
more than basic needs.
So what is sustainable development and what are its consequences?
What is current in environmental thought?
This conference re-evaluated the relevance of environmentalism
in the 21st century, examining the intimate links between the concepts of
development, sustainability and environmentalism
and asking if development to western standards is possible for the developing world.

What level of communication is possible between humans and animals?
How much can the study of animals tell us about ourselves?
What does it mean to be human?

In 1967, Roger Fouts, a psychology student, began teaching American Sign
Language to a young chimpanzee called Washoe, beginning a relationship that has
continued for over 30 years.
The Chimp That Spoke is a production inspired by this story.
Acclaimed for their bold visceral theatre productions,
David Glass Ensemble present a
meditation on our closest animal relatives and explore what it is to be human.
The post-show discussion What does it mean to be human?
was organised by The Great Debate
in association with Northern Stage
and David Glass EnsembleChair:Mo LovattPanel
David Glass, Artistic Director, David Glass EnsembleCaspar Hewett, Chair, The Great DebateProfessor
John Burn, Institute of Human Genetics, International Centre for LifeDavid Large, The Great Debate

A discussion convened by Mo Lovatt in association
with
The Ashton Group,
The Great Debate and
Northern Stage.
As part of Northern Stage's Colour season, this event looked at issues
raised by the play
Lockerbie 103, the
impact of US and British foreign policies and at attitudes towards
the impending war with Iraq.Chair: Caspar HewettSpeakers:Ian Ferguson, journalist and co-author of
Cover up of Convenience: The Hidden Scandal of LockerbieJon Bryan, Lecturer in Sociology, The Great DebateDoug Henderson, MPPeter Hetherington, Regional Affairs Editor, The GuardianRachel Ashton, Director, Lockerbie 103Des Dillon, writer, Lockerbie 103

Do our genes influence our conscious experiences? Do they explain them? Is
the human mind something we can properly study? What can we learn about
ourselves through the study of mind from the perspective of evolution? Why has
it become popular to apply Neo-Darwinian principles to the philosophy of mind
and consciousness? This day school will examine the issues raised by these
questions through a study of evolutionary factors as applied to theories of
mind. A conception of natural consciousness will be formed.

The opening of the twenty first century brings with it new knowledge about
our genes and our brains which promises a revolution in the way we view
ourselves. Alongside this knowledge is a tendency to view human nature in a
deterministic way.

Some argue that only the social sciences can answer questions about human
behaviour, while others argue that we are determined by our biology.

So where are the appropriate places to look if we want to understand human
nature? What are the implications for our ability to act as autonomous rational
individuals?

A hundred years ago Darwin revolutionised our understanding of the origin
of species. Since then the theory of evolution by natural and sexual selection
has become accepted wisdom. Earlier this century Social Darwinism was
discredited, yet in recent years it has again become popular to attempt to
explain society in Darwinian terms. At the same time theories abound suggesting
that humanity's evolutionary history and the genes we inherit determine our
behaviour. What does this convergence of natural and social theory represent?
This course investigates the theory of sexual selection and its application to
animal and human behaviour, focussing on the themes: determinism, choice,
ethics and responsibility.

How much influence do our genes have on our behaviour? Is human nature the
same for all societies? What can we learn about ourselves through the study of
evolution? What are the implications for our freedom? Why has it become popular
to apply Neo-Darwinist principles to human behaviour and to society? These
questions and others will be examined through a discussion of evolutionary
theory and genetics and their application to human behaviour.

A hundred years ago Darwin revolutionised our understanding of the origin
of species. Since then the theory of evolution by natural slection has become
accepted wisdom. But what does this mean? What can evolution explain and how
does it do that? This day school will interrogate recent evolutionary theory
and genetics and apply philosophical approaches to examine these questions.

What is the selfish gene? What is the link between Darwinism and genetics
What can the study of evolution tell us about animal behaviour? What can we
learn about the origins of altruism through the study of evolution? Why are
there still disagreements within evolutionary theory today? These questions and
many others are examined through a study of recent evolutionary theory and
genetics and their application to animal behaviour.

Since the publication of Darwin's On The Origin of Species by Means of
Natural Selection in 1859 the theory of evolution by natural selection has
become accepted wisdom. Yet great debates are still taking place amongst
evolutionary theorists. This course looks at Darwinism and genetics and at the
disagreements within evolutionary theory today. The modern application of
Darwinism to animal behaviour is investigated.

The course consists of ten sessions during which the work of specific
authors and their ideas are introduced. Pair work, group work and class
discussion allow the students to develop arguments and gain confidence in
understanding the theories.

Risk Conciousness and the Culture of Fear
Saturday 16th May 1998, Centre for Continuing Education, University of
Newcastle
One day workshop facilitated by Caspar Hewett
and Jon Bryan

Are we really at risk? Why has the 1990s been characterised by one
health panic after another? Why do new developments in fields such
as genetic engineering engender fear and suspicion? Why has safety
become the obsession of our era? What are the implications for the
future? In particular, of the worls is viewed through the prism of
risk, how can science and society move forwards?

Sustainability and the Promise of Factor Four
Saturday 31st January 1998, Centre for Continuing Education, University of
Newcastle
Tutors: Caspar Hewett and
David Hall

Is sustainable development a good thing? Twenty five years on
from Limits to Growth, the new report to the Club of Rome,
Factor Four - Doubling Wealth,
Halving Resource Use is essential reading for anyone interested in
sustainability. The book describes fifty exciting examples of new technologies
which could revolutionise our use of resources, allowing us to improve living
standards at the same time as decreasing our use of raw materials, fuels and
minerals. However, having assumed that limited resources represent the most
important challenge to humanity today, the authors go on to introduce the idea
of resource productivity as the new measure of progress. What does this
represent?

Are there limited resources?

What are the implications of constraining resource use?

This discussion will explore the themes developed in the report,
looking at the new technologies, examining the authors' sustainable agenda and
questioning some of the assumptions made in what promises to be one of the most
influential books of the decade.

The Great Debate - Evolution and Human Nature
January - March 1998, Centre for Continuing Education, University of Newcastle
Tutors: Caspar Hewett and
David Hall

A hundred years ago Darwin revolutionised our understanding of the origin of
species. Since then the theory of evolution by natural selection has become
accepted wisdom. Yet great debates are still taking place amongst evolutionary
theorists. Why is it then that prominent writers such as Richard Dawkins and
Stephen Jay Gould fail to agree?

Earlier this century Social Darwinism was discredited, yet in recent years
it has again become popular to explain society in Darwinian terms. At the same
time theories abound suggesting that humanity's evolutionary history and the
genes we inherit determine our behaviour. What does this convergence of natural
and social theory represent?

This course will look at Darwinism and genetics and at the disagreements
within evolutionary theory today. The modern application of Darwinism to
society and to human behaviour will be investigated and reasons sought for the
renewed popularity of this approach. The course will consist of ten sessions
during which the work of specific authors and their ideas will be introduced.
Pair work, group work and class discussion will allow the students to develop
arguments and gain confidence in understanding the theories and the context in
which they have become prevalent.